The Music Tree
Age range 3+
Luke won't play the trumpet Granddad gave him until he discovers a seed Granddad sent will only grow when it hears music.
Luke the frog is too busy to play the trumpet his grandfather sent him, and when Granddad sends him a seed, Luke is frustrated that it is slow to grow — until it responds to the music of a band of street musicians. Luke and the musicians play until the magical tree is tall and strong, and until Luke loves playing his trumpet. This is a story about patience and effort with delightful retro/folk art style illustrations.
'Luke is quite a busy frog...Luke and the other anthropomorphized animals are depicted clothed and in human habitation in the happy, playful, childlike paintings; with their bright, colorful hues, they are in perfect synchrony with the simple, direct text.' — Kirkus Reviews
Julia Valtanen is an author and illustrator currently living in Tallinn, Estonia. Julia has an MA degree in graphic design with many years experience in this field. However, Julia has recently found her real passion — writing and illustrating stories for children. The main source of Julia’s inspiration is nature and she uses this to help teach children to love and care about their environment.